Breathing as Training
We get very good at what we practise, and we practise breathing upward of 20,000 times every single day.
Like all habits, the deeper into the groove, the harder it is to climb back out.
Most of us never think of breathing as training, yet repetition influences how the nervous system regulates over time.
Breathing both reflects and subtly reinforces the state the nervous system is predominantly operating in.
Healthy breathing is not a rigid state or fixed definition.
There are parameters, but it must also fluctuate.
Sprinting at high intensity carries a higher breath rate and volume than a slow yoga flow.
The breath must be able to shift to meet the moment, just as a healthy nervous system can respond to
demand and then settle again.
What State Shifting Really Means
This is what I call state shifting.
It is about restoring the system’s capacity to mobilise when something calls for it and to settle afterwards,
without trying to manufacture a particular feeling through technique.
Having the capacity to shift states means having access to more internal rooms inside your body.
Some people live in one small room, the same tight corner of experience, without realising there are other rooms available.
Nervous system capacity is space and options in how you show up moment to moment.
The intention is not to be calm all the time or to avoid stress.
It is to cultivate a system that can surge and settle fluidly.
When that flexibility narrows, we begin living in one dominant gear.
Over time, accumulated load, the wear and tear on the system when demand outpaces repair, reduces that range.
When Overbreathing Becomes the Baseline
Breathing is a chemical exchange that underpins metabolism.
The balance between oxygen and carbon dioxide helps maintain the internal conditions the body relies
on to function within a healthy range.
Breathing is regulated automatically in response to shifts in these gases, but over time sensitivity to those shifts can change.
Hyperventilation, which means breathing in excess of metabolic demand, simply refers to overbreathing.
It lowers carbon dioxide below the body’s usual range.
Many people do not realise they are doing it chronically because the signs are often subtle rather than dramatic.
It can show up as frequent sighing, small audible gasps between sentences, tingling in the hands or fingertips,
or a persistent sense of being switched on and struggling to tolerate stillness.
Consistently reduced carbon dioxide increases neural excitability and alters internal chemistry.
Bodily sensations can feel amplified.
Those sensations are often interpreted as further threat, which drives even bigger breathing.
The loop reinforces itself.
The system begins operating as if more demand is coming, even in objectively safe environments.
This is often how panic escalates.
What begins as a benign bodily sensation can spiral when it is interpreted as catastrophic.
If the pattern repeats, the system can remain slightly mobilised even when nothing urgent is happening.
Another common presentation is the chronically mobilised system, where stillness feels uncomfortable or intolerable.
Movement feels predictable and therefore safer.
When external stimulation drops, internal sensations become more noticeable, and breathing may remain
slightly elevated even in safe environments.
Relearning Range
So what helps?
For many people, the shift is toward gentler, lower volume breathing rather than bigger breaths.
Reducing excessive ventilation allows carbon dioxide to return toward its usual range and stabilises internal chemistry.
Functional breathing supports efficient oxygen use and steadier nervous system regulation.
It is typically nasal, quiet and rhythmically responsive, with expansion occurring through the lower ribs
while the chest and shoulders remain relatively relaxed.
The neck and face are minimally involved.
You do not need bigger breaths.
You need better range.
Each quiet, efficient inhale is a rehearsal for safety.
And what we rehearse, we become.
This article offers a glimpse into Brooke’s broader work.
In The Breath Reset Plan, she explores how to read your breathing patterns, retrain defaults and support
nervous system flexibility from the inside out.
Brooke Elliston
The Breath Reset Plan